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Thread: Partnership Residency & Work Visa

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jun 2019
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    United Kingdom
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    Default Partnership Residency & Work Visa

    Hello all,

    Currently awaiting decision on a partnership residency visa lodged in early May.

    INZ processing times are resolving 90% applications at the moment in eleven months.

    My NZ partner is in the UK with me on a young persons working holiday visa. I’m not certain that INZ will make a decision before her visa is up for here. Contemplating submitting an application for partnership work visa also as my medical is valid for a few more weeks and was particularly expensive to have done in the UK. Police check is also still valid.

    Does anyone have any knowledge as to whether it’s worth applying for both visas? Will I get the option to upgrade to the residency if that is approved after the work visa?

    Thanks in advance for your help.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Posts
    37,822

    Default

    Will I get the option to upgrade to the residency if that is approved after the work visa?
    If you are granted Residence after obtaining a partner-sponsored work visa, residence will just take over from the work visa - there's no saving of money, if that's what you're hoping.

    The advantage to you could be if you definitely want the right to go back to NZ with her when she has to leave the UK at the end of her visa - when does it expire?

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jun 2019
    Location
    United Kingdom
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    Default

    Hi JandM

    Not hoping to save money on the cost of the visa as such, already paid the residency visa fee, would just would save roughly $550 nzd on visa medical if I lodge work visa whilst my current medical is still valid.

    Her visa is expiring August 2020, so still have 13 months (we submitted in May 2019) although we were hoping to come back before August which is why I'm considering the partnership work visa as INZ are processing 75% of applications within three months.

    Yes JandM, I definitely want to be able to go back with her when the visa expires, we've been living together for three years now and this is the first time we're facing a situation where we may not be able to live somewhere together. If I don't go for the work visa, has anyone ever entered NZ on a visitor visa in the hope that they would receive their residency approved whilst they are in NZ? On a UK passport I can stay for nine months, which would mean we would still be able to live together, I just wouldn't be able to work in that time we're waiting. I wonder if that could potentially be a better option than applying for the work visa too, or even if this is allowed? We're hoping to travel in January 2020, although we have that leeway until August if need be. January is eight months from when we lodged our application in May, at the moment INZ have said on the website 75% of applications are issued a decision in that time, so it's a gamble really if we would be lucky enough to be in the 75% to get an answer in January.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
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    Your idea about the visitor's visa is not a good one.

    The thing to remember is that a visitor's visa isn't there to be a catch-all for someone who hasn't got a different visa suitable for their situation - it's specifically for a stay in NZ for a limited time, with the person having a demonstrable life and responsibilities in another country to which they will return at the end of the time. (It's not a substitute for some other visa UNLESS INZ themselves decide to issue one in a particular case, and that isn't done because an applicant asks, for their convenience.) Telling INZ that you DON'T want to go "home" effectively rules you out for a visitor's visa, UNLESS INZ in full knowledge of the situation decide to grant it. They sometimes do this if they believe that a couple are genuine, but haven't lived together long enough to meet the regulations, but I've never heard of it happening just to let the foreign partner in while processing is happening.

    (If you arrive in NZ applying to get in as a visa-waiver person, your name and details would immediately bring up your records on the INZ computer, including the fact that you have an application in for visa(s) which has not yet been decided. This would LOOK LIKE one kind of classic behaviour, trying to pre-empt INZ's decision about the residence visa and/or the partner-sponsored work visa, with the danger that you might disappear into the overstayers' black market.)

    So, as you have plenty of partnership proof, you have to let the visa process take its course. To try to shorten things, as insurance, by going for the partner-sponsored work visa, is fine to do, but again, there's no guarantee on timings (because of the present backlogs and chaos in many INZ proceedings). The timings given on the website or by any official are NEVER a promise, only ever their best guess.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jun 2019
    Location
    United Kingdom
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    Default

    Thanks JandM, looks like I just need to be patient.. just getting more concerned with the slow processing times being covered in the media now. I think I may just front the cost of the work visa if it nears the expiration of my partners UK visa. I will certainly not pursue the visitor visa now after your advice although I am concerned that we may need to visit family in NZ before a decision on my residency application. Do you think a return ticket would show INZ a clear intention to depart NZ despite flagging up in the system that i am awaiting a visa decision? Very unlikely we go back for Christmas but we are considering it.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
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    I think it very unlikely that your partner would get a visitor's visa while the present application hasn't yet been processed, for the reasons mentioned above. YOU know you are decent people with a genuine case, but INZ proceed from the idea that everyone may be a crook paying someone to lie to get a visa, so all partnership cases are thoroughly investigated, and no leeway allowed around them.

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